Special Issue on Desistance Across the Life-Course, Volume 2: Editorial Introduction

Abstract

As we stated in the previous special issue on desistance across the life-course, research on this topic has come of age. The sheer volume of responses to our call for papers on this topic is testament to this, and we are pleased to present our readers with the second special issue of the Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology on this topic. As the previous special issue demonstrated, current research on desistance demonstrates theoretical richness, methodological sophistication and analytical breadth. The current collection of manuscripts further illustrates the importance of this area of scholarship for advancing knowledge and understanding of desistance across the life-course and the associated implications for theory, method and practise. Indeed, the included manuscripts illustrate the implications for understanding desistance when considering the time window under examination. Furthermore, the papers illustrate the importance of empirically testing leading theoretical understandings of desistance as well as in examining the associations and mechanisms linking the leading precursors of desistance. We could not be more thrilled by the response to this call for papers on desistance. It is anticipated that this growing collection of manuscripts will continue to spurn further theoretical and empirical interest on this topic over time. Indeed, by advancing the boundaries of extant theories and research on desistance, the current collections illuminate areas of confirmation and disconfirmation in respect of current knowledge and understanding of desistance across the life-course. Indeed, the seeds for asking new questions and advancing new insights may well spring from the expanding range of manuscripts on desistance that have been presented in the Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology. It is without doubt a fruitful time for research and theory on this important component of offending across the life-course and we are especially thankful to the many authors who are pursuing this area of scholarship.